JEF Turku organised a regional and municipal election panel on 27 March 2025, together with the Schuman Society and European Southwest Finland. Representatives of seven parties took part in the panel, with the Swedish People’s Party’s representative unable to attend.
The European Union allocates funding for various projects among its member states. Turku has many areas that have received funding specifically from the Union. Regarding EU funding, however, it emerged that municipalities do not always sufficiently know the opportunities offered by the EU, and that cooperation should therefore be developed. Kasper Holtari (Finns Party) considered it important to increase awareness and train municipal decision-makers on the EU’s funding opportunities. Verneri Virtanen (Christian Democrats) saw benefits in cooperation but emphasised that EU cooperation should not be seen as competition between municipalities, but as building networks. Mimmi Ruusunen (Centre Party) also focused on this, emphasising fairness in cooperation, particularly from the perspective of smaller and more remote municipalities. Miku Kuuskorpi (Social Democratic Party) supported raising awareness and establishing cooperation on a more permanent basis.
EU cooperation received broad support from the panellists, particularly regarding funding and network development. However, raising awareness of these means clearly stood out as an important point. JEF Turku is committed to increasing EU awareness, especially among young people. JEF Turku is also involved in the annual Europe Day event held in May. The local association also works closely with JEF Finland, and in May a group of activists will gather in Tampere for the 30 Years in the EU seminar.
From the audience, panellists were asked about Turku’s future possibility of applying for the title of European Youth Capital. This is an initiative launched by the European Youth Forum in 2009, which came into effect in 2014. Its aim is to increase young people’s opportunities for influence and activity and to strengthen European identity. This question received the strongest consensus among the panellists. Niina Ratilainen (Green League) considered the idea good precisely because of Turku’s large youth population, also emphasising young people’s role in preparing the initiative. Roosa-Adalmiina Kesti (National Coalition Party) likewise emphasised young people’s participation in developing the initiative and improving young people’s opportunities for influence through it. Aarni Koivisto (Left Alliance) also saw in the Youth Capital an opportunity for internationalisation and investment. Kasper Holtari (Finns Party) stressed the need to focus on developing the wellbeing of children and young people at the local level.
JEF Turku sees in the European Youth Capital an opportunity to develop local young people’s opportunities for influence. Increasing political interest is important at different levels of governance, and bringing activity as close to young people as possible is one way to achieve this.
JEF Turku also advocates for increasing European awareness in its own region.
JEF Turku’s political officers
English summary: JEF Turku organized a regional and municipal election panel on March 27, 2025, in collaboration with the Schuman Society and the European Southwest Finland. The discussion highlighted the importance of increasing awareness of EU funding opportunities, as local decision-makers often lack sufficient knowledge on the subject. Panelists broadly supported EU cooperation, particularly regarding funding and network development, and emphasized the need for greater awareness and education on these opportunities. The possibility of Turku applying for the title of European Youth Capital was also discussed, receiving strong support as a means to enhance youth participation and strengthen European identity. JEF Turku remains committed to promoting EU awareness and increasing political engagement among young people in the region.